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Arthur Justus Regulus VII
Arthur Justus Regulus VII is a player character created by Flipz. Once a teenaged Mage and exile from his homeland, Arthur wandered Olegaia for several years before finding himself in Eubric--specifically, Heroica Hall. Though his quick wits, inquisitive nature, and love of learning endeared him to Heroica librarian Byblos, like his friend he, too has had struggles with temptation towards the powers of Chaos and The Void. Though he turned his back on chaos with the defeat of Wren, his rivalry with The Regret led him to return briefly to his old ways, sacrificing his own humanity for the sake of power and transforming him into a living weapon. Since his transformation, he strives to defy the destructive power forged into his very being, and to bring hope and freedom into the world. Before Heroica Youth As a young child, Arthur was the son of Arthur Justus Regulus VI, the leading nobleman of the small tribe known as the Zut'tau'ri, located on a small peninsula along the border of Xu and Nagashan. For most of his life, Arthur had been friends with two other children from noble families: Vaygas Spar'kell, son of the Captain of the village Watch, and Caroline Kootenai, only daughter and sole heir to the rival Kootenai family. One day, while exploring some of the volcanic caves of their homeland, the three stumbled into an ancient Temple of Chaos, wherein they found four ancient artifacts: a Zoot's Plaything, a Pandemonicon, a Staff of Chaotic Summons, and a vial of antidermis. The three eagerly dove into the forbidden studies of Chaos, but soon came to quarrel over their prizes, in the process inadvertently summoning a form of Chaos Beast known as a Bio Beast that threatened to go on a rampage through their village. Desperate to find a solution, Arthur gave himself over to study of the Pandemonicon, many of its dark secrets being burned into his mind in the process. Eventually, he came upon a banishing ritual that the three performed, seemingly destroying both the Beast and their artifacts; the three swore never to return to the study of Chaos, a promise that all three would one day break. A few years after the incident in the Temple of Chaos, Arthur caught his father cheating on his mother with Valentine Ziegfried, a mage from Eubric Freeport with whom the elder Regulus had been working. Unaware that the relationship was part of a preexisting arrangement between Valentine, his biological mother, and Allana, the mother he knew, Arthur confided in Caroline and her father--only for the latter to spread word of the perceived infidelity throughout the village, greatly reducing the Regulus family's reputation. Unwilling to reveal the truth of Arthur's parentage--especially considering what low regard the Zut'tau'ri held for mages--Arthur's father broke off the relationship and publicly distanced himself from Valentine, even going so far as to spread lies about having been magically seduced, but the damage had already been done. Not long after the supposed affair came to light, Arthur's father vanished from the Zut'tau'ri, never to be seen again. Exile With the disappearance of Arthur's father and the rise in influence of the rival Kootenai family, the Regulus family fell into decline. Arthur was eventually forced to begin working in the gem mines, while his mother resumed her job in the village Watch she had given up when Arthur was born. It wasn't enough, however, and the Regulus family was forced to move out of their ancestral manor and into a smaller home; at this point, Arthur's friends Vaygas and Caroline banded together to help him, and the three moved into their own place to ease the burden on Arthur's mother. Eventually, Arthur and Caroline grew close romantically, and around the same time the magical abilities he'd unknowingly inherited from the Zeigfrieds began to manifest themselves, with Arthur confiding in Caroline as he struggled to keep his new abilities secret. Seven years to the day after his father's disappearance, however, all of it would come crashing down around him. Unbeknownst to Arthur, Caroline had begun dabbling in Chaos magic once more, eventually retrieving the Zoot's Plaything they had banished to the Void as children; on the day of the anniversary, the Bio Beast they had summoned as children also returned from the Void and went on a rampage, slaying Vaygas Spar'kell's father and several other guards before it could be driven off. Realizing that Caroline had to be dabbling in Chaos again, Arthur tried to turn her in to the village elders, but she got to them first, revealing to them his magical abilities and claiming that Arthur had been the one responsible for the Bio Beast's appearance. Pouncing on the opportunity to further destroy the Regulus family's reputation, the elders took Arthur before Vaygas, who had been declared the new Captain of the village Watch with his father's dying breath. Hurt by Arthur's refusal to confide in him, and blaming him for summoning the Bio Beast that ended his father's life, Vaygas banished Arthur from the Zut'tau'ri, declaring that Arthur could never return again on penalty of death. Arthur wandered the world for two years before eventually finding his way to Eubric and Heroica Hall. Heroica Career Early Career Early in his Career, Arthur formed fast friendships with Benji Carvenhall and Atramor Gibbin among others; however, perhaps the most prominent new acquaintance was De'kra the Echo (known at the time as a Shade). These two odd individuals, the enigmatic Rogue and the clumsy Mage, would go on to forge a companionship that would last for years, before De'kra ultimately vanished from Eubric. Quest #17: The Lion's Share On his first Quest, Arthur quickly proved to be a valuable ally, demonstrating an unexpected expertise with siege weaponry and science far beyond the norm in his party's defense of Fort Bric'bay against the Brobric Elves. This led to another lasting friendship, this time between Arthur and the Lion Knight noble and engineer Count Lewis Knyghton. During this Quest Arthur also pledged himself to be the apprentice of his Party Leader, noted Mage Althior Emorith; though this partnership did not go far, the Mage would leave a lasting impression on Arthur, influencing him in more ways than either would expect. Though the party came perilously close to defeat in the final battle, they were ultimately victorious, and Arthur's resulting confidence would soon lead him into one of the most memorable conflicts of the modern era of Heroica: the Dastan Civil War. The Dastan Trilogy Not long after his first war against the Elves, Arthur found himself swept up in a second conflict--this time, the massive struggle between the Dastanian Rebellion (spearheaded by the Rogue Lions and Cult of the Chimaera in conjunction with other local forces) and the Dastanian and Lion Knight forces over the fate of the Empire of Dastan. It was here that Arthur first met Vipera, Sir Poletad, Phil, Hans, and Wren, sparking the beginning of his fall to Chaos. Over the course of the Quest, Arthur began to succumb to madness, committing increasingly more deranged and horrific acts in conjunction with his usual heroism and tactical brilliance. Although the culmination of his and the other Heroes' efforts was the defeat of the rebels and peace in Dastan, including the seemingly-impossible rescue of Princess Ella Septrine from Chaos Beasts, it was also clear that Arthur's unstable sanity would soon lead him to disaster... A Chaos Beast Arthur battled in Dastan also created the Zoot's Plaything that would have a profound impact on Arthur for the rest of his days. Slide into Chaos Upon his return to Eubric from Dastan, Arthur trained as a Sorcerer, alongside his friend De'kra who was training to be an Assassin. During the training session, Arthur instinctively channeled his magic through the Zoot's Plaything from Dastan, which he had borrowed from his previous Party Leader, an ogre named Skrall. This incident bound Arthur to the orb of Chaos, though he did not realize this, and from then forward Arthur's physical corruption began. Quest #38: The Lost Party Not long after his training, Arthur decided to take on Wren directly, joining Haldor Skovgaard, Cronk, Tesni Hightribe, and Alexis Fenral, with the guidance of Captain McColt of Haddon, in a Quest to seek out the Lost Party of Wren's final Quest as a member of Heroica. In the Valley of Peace, Arthur and the rest of the party explored the past of Wren and the Lost Party through the use of Flowers of Sybil, magical flowers that grow in Ether-heavy places and hold memories of the past, while also rescuing the Lost Party's survivors. While there, some of Arthur's own memories were revealed, and his own dedication to Chaos confirmed for all. After rescuing the Lost Party and defeating Sir Roderick Hinckwell and the Shard of Ennoc within him, Wren appeared once again and stole the Amulet of Gods from under the Heroes' noses, another step in her master plan fulfilled despite their efforts to stop her. The most important repercussions of this Quest for Arthur were the relationships he formed on the Quest. During a fight with one of Wren's first Chaos Beasts, Arthur picked a fight with Haldor over the value of his knowledge, one that very nearly came to blows mid-battle, with only the interference of McColt and the Nord Barbarian Sasha preventing an all-out brawl. After the battle, the two patched things up, but the incident would prove to be just the beginning of a much bigger rift, one that would culminate during and shortly after the Heroes' final battle with Wren. While in the Valley, Arthur also began to develop an attraction to the Elven Evoker Alexis, who had broken up with Arthur's mentor Althior shortly before the Quest began. This, too, would prove to be an important relationship in the near future... Quest #51: A Shanty for Science Quest #53: Chaos in Eubric Appeal to Order Quest #66: WANTED! Steerpike the Poisoner Quest #70: The Syndicate Quest #77: Your Elves are Better Than Ours Friends in High (and Low) Places Quest #92:The Prophetess and the Warrior The Transformation Quest #99: Six Thousand Feet Under Quest #103: Alfendi Lupine Strikes Back The Dragon Trainer In the wake of his assistance in R'kilf and his unusually loyal service to the business partners of The Shadeaux, Isaac Shawe took note of Arthur, sending a letter arranging for the Skirmisher to meet with Count Noctus Shadeaux to be considered as a replacement for Darius Kaan in the House's Dragoon-training program. While the program was discontinued shortly afterward, Arthur was successfully trained as a Dragoon by the Copper Fox, and taken by The Dragonlord to receive a Dragon egg from Smaragdea's lair. Choosing the golden egg that called to him, Arthur's dragon companion soon hatched. After a brief spiritual conversation, in which both Arthur and the hatchling discovered each other's connection to the Spirit Pools, the female Dragon announced herself as Miirym, a name meaning "guardian" in the Draconic tongue, and one likely suggested to her by her late grandmother, the Elder Dragon Evya. Together, the duo decided to return to Heroica and seek their fortunes there. Quest #120: Hand of Blue Arthur's paternal skill would soon be put to the test, as Hero and Dragon were chosen to journey to Xu on a Quest, accompanying Shanxian Ji Pei on her summons before the Council of the Blue Hand. Though Arthur tried his best to protect and raise Miirym as he would his own daughter, the rebellious reptile grew proud upon Lee Long's explanation of the revered status of Dragons in Xu, and Arthur's hands-off parenting style proved problematic as time went on. In Xu, Arthur, Miirym, Atramor Gibbin, and Skrall did their best to protect Lady Shanxian, even as a rebellion began to break out around them. Forced to decide between the lives of innocents and the wishes of their charge, the group reluctantly chose the latter, until Arthur at last chose to stop running when the lives of Spymaster Tanooki and Weather Mage Sun Qui were put at risk, and the Dragoon refused to let them perish. Despite the delay, however, the Heroes managed to escort Shanxian to the Council chambers, where she revealed her complicity in the affair. After reaffirming their support of Shanxian and her rebellion, the Heroes defeated the last of the Council's guards, and returned to Eubric with a successful coup behind them. Finding Family Despite Arthur's best efforts, Miirym had repeatedly put herself in harm's way on the mission, interfering in Arthur's attacks time after time. In frustration, Arthur decided to finally visit his recently-revealed mother Valentine Ziegfried and meet his half-brother Noel Ziegfried. Under their counsel, Arthur decided to briefly suspend his career as a Dragoon, taking up the path of the Weather Mage instead thanks to Sun Qui's gift. Upon learning of his distant cousin Lily's need of the aid of Heroes, Arthur immediately volunteered his aid, despite the neglected Miirym's doubts. Quest #125: The Dollhouse Retirement One Last Mission Quest #139: Around the World Quest #147: Judgement Day The Next Generation